In Nigeria, the radio royalty model operates quite differently from what you’d find in more developed markets. Instead of paying royalties based on how often a song is played, most stations here pay a fixed annual fee to the collection agency. These agencies aren’t structured to track or verify actual airplay, so their data on popular artists usually comes from external platforms like Spotify or other public sources. As a result, what gets played on radio doesn’t directly affect how much artists earn — digital monetization is far more advanced in that regard.
Also, a new audience measurement system is being introduced in Nigeria. It will give more detailed and granular data on what stations are playing and what audiences are engaging with. That could eventually influence how much we pay to artists. It goes deeper into monitoring both output and audience response — essentially tracking who we’re playing, how often, and what listeners are engaging with. Over time, that could affect how payments are allocated to artists. But for now, we still just pay an agreed bulk sum to the collection agency, regardless of what we play.
But honestly, I don’t see radio catching up with digital in terms of revenue. Remember, streaming is global while radio is local. Plus, given the economic realities — for example, $1 is about N1,500 now — the gap will remain. Digital will always deliver more exposure and more money.
In terms of how I see radio and event platforms working together to maximize artist revenues in Nigeria’s music economy, I believe things have changed. We’re a Nigerian radio station — even though we also have a presence in London — and the reality is that most of the big artists are now signed to global platforms like Live Nation for their live shows. That means they earn far more internationally than they could ever earn here. The big artists and their teams aren’t as emotional about these things as we are. They’re strictly business. To be fair, sometimes they do “sneak in” and perform at local shows, but you can’t advertise it.
Their contracts with international promoters won’t allow it. If you put their name on the bill, their global partners could step in and demand fees or block the performance. So while informal appearances happen, true collaboration is difficult. At the end of the day, it’s about the contracts and the investments made in these artists. Their teams are focused on protecting that — and that means decisions are made in dollars, not sentiment.
Radio still plays a very important role. I often describe it as the Discovery Channel for music. Yes, social media is powerful, but radio remains a key discovery point for artists and audiences. Over the years, we’ve hosted premieres and takeovers with artists like Wizkid, Burna Boy, and many others. Despite their global reach, they still recognize that radio connects them to one of the largest constituencies of Nigerians — the same audience that supported them from the beginning.
When radio starts playing a song, that’s when the wider ecosystem catches on. Clubs pick it up, DJs start playing it, and it spreads. Very few people actively go searching for a brand-new Davido track online before hearing about it elsewhere. It almost always starts with the radio. So, radio’s primary role is still discovery — getting the music out there and creating awareness. Not everyone follows every artist on social media, but nearly everyone listens to radio. That makes it the first touchpoint where new music gains traction.
I think they [Afrobeats and other Nigerian genres] are doing the right things and moving in the right direction as an industry. This generation sets the trends, so naturally they follow wherever the youth are consuming content. For my generation, discovery happened mostly through radio. But for younger people today, it’s platforms like Snapchat, Instagram, TikTok, or wherever else they’re spending their time.
The reality is that there are so many competing channels for attention — both eyes and ears — that you have to put your content where people are most likely to engage with it. And that’s what artists are doing now. The model has shifted. In the past, you released a song first and then followed it up with a video. Today, you might release the video before the song even drops. It’s all about evolving with the audience and adapting to how they consume music.
This piece first appeared in RegalStone’s Basslines to Billions: Nigeria’s Music Market Intelligence Report
The post OPINION: Radio is still the discovery channel for Afrobeats – by Chris Ubosi, Managing Director, Megaletrics Ltd appeared first on Nigerian Entertainment Today.
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